3 things you need to know about Johnny Maxwell

Johnny Maxwell is just an ordinary boy - not smart, popular or rich. But he does love video games. Here are three things to know about Terry Pratchett's hero - there's aliens, a rather strange bunch of kids, ghosts and a time travel!

1. He’s deeply normal.

Johnny leads a nice quiet – almost boring - life in the small town of Blackbury. He likes video games, he has friends, and he does his homework. So when some aliens reach out to him through his video game Only You Can Save Mankind and ask for his help all her can do is say yes, it’s the polite thing to do after all.

2. He has the strangest of friends.

There’s Wobbler who’s obsessed with computer games. He wants to be a nerd but they won’t let him join. Then there’s Bigmac who’s a bit of a ruffian but surprisingly good at maths. He has a confused view of car ownership which the gang are trying to help him with. There’s also Yo-less and Kirsty. Yo-less earned his nickname because he never says ‘Yo!’, he’s a bit of a geek but very attentive so tends to notice things others don’t.

And then there’s Kirsty, probably the smartest in the gang, she’s highly organised and easy to talk to, mostly because she doesn’t really seem to be listening.

3. Things happen to Johnny. He wishes they wouldn’t, but they keep happening anyway.

For some reason Johnny seems to lack the filter most kids have which means he sees things no-one else does. Like aliens, ghosts and a time travelling bag lady!